


Presque Vu

by aries_antagonist



Category: Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Naruto
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Angst with a Happy Ending, Awkward Romance, Community: kakairu, First Meetings, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Happy Ending, Humor, Like the fluffiest, M/M, Manic Pixie Dream Kakashi, Modern AU, Sarcasm, Smut lite, Snow, Winter, prankster naruto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:42:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28873278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aries_antagonist/pseuds/aries_antagonist
Summary: “Would you like me to take you home, Iruka,” Kakashi’s voice low, syrupy.  He didn’t move, didn’t make any indication of grabbing Iruka and yet- he felt the irresistible pull.The amber light through the window dripped it’s honey gold hue over the upper curve of the man’s stilled lips, the soft, exposed skin at his throat, the dampened cloth that clung to broad shoulders.The question reverberated in Iruka’s electricity-filled brain.It’s New Year’s Eve and Iruka only has one delivery to make before he can go home to his cozy apartment and curl up by himself in front of the TV. The universe, also maybe Naruto, has other plans for the loner.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka
Comments: 4
Kudos: 39





	Presque Vu

**Author's Note:**

> I swear I’m alive! 
> 
> I took a really fluffy detour this week! I don’t think I will write any more in this universe, as Iruka and Kakashi are both kind of difficult for me to portray. But I really enjoyed getting to make this piece. Idk. I know New Year’s has already passed, but it was unfortunately an “Anniversary” for me in the past, so it’s still difficult to get through every year. So, making it a little sweeter with a story is always nice.
> 
> I’ll be back onto my SNS stories ASAP! If you’re ever wondering where the f I fell off the face of the Earth to, checking my tumblr for updates and rants is a good place to start. After that, best bet is to check your Local Bubble tea shop. 
> 
> Okay! Get ready, good vibes only for my sweet baby Iruka. He deserves the whole world.

xXx

* * *

He paused to check the address once again in concern, his gloved hand hovering over the ornate, brass door knocker.

_48 N Palisades,_ said the crumpled receipt paper in Naruto’s left handed chicken-scratch.

Yeah, this was definitely the right place, Iruka thought. He scanned for the number plate above him, before knocking again, a little louder this time.

It was, by and far, the most exquisite home he had ever delivered a bottle of 12 dollar off-brand vodka to. Hell, that he had ever delivered anything to, period. It had apparently come in as a last minute, urgent request just as Iruka was about to clock-out for the evening. 

The driveway was gated, and he’d been asked (via a _telecom, automated butler voice- who actually has one of those?_ ) to 

“If you would, park at the base of the drive. Traverse the rest of the way via foot. Good evening.”

Though excessive, Iruka didn’t really mind. He was being paid by the hour (and well) for deliveries.

It was a last minute service his boss had come up with to cover the increase in demand at the grocery store due to the holidays. 

And, besides, he was intrigued. 

His breath emerged as dissipating clouds in the freezing evening air. It had been snowing since early afternoon, but hadn’t thought a need for much more than a plain, denim blue linen shirt and a coat. It wasn’t like he was planning on being outside for long anyways, his job was often fast-paced.

_Should I knock again?_

It was, per his bosses’ _kind of ridiculous_ policy, to not leave the items at the door and to wait until someone answered. But that was just Naruto for you. That man was so devoted to his customers, he claimed that neighborhood groceries that failed to care for their regulars were the ones that failed. 

Iruka knew the truth, however, was simply that Naruto would spend his dying breath trying to make someone else happy.

He raised his hand to knock again, rapping against the solid lacquered frame. Nothing. He was just about to see if there was another entry when suddenly he heard a loud, piercing cackle and the unmistakable screech of tires. 

From the steps, he could just make out-

“Oh my god. Oh MY GOD THAT’S-“ he only got a few paces down the drive before the car, _his car,_ was long out of sight.

The door creaked open behind him and he spun on his heel, eyes wild. 

A silver haired man in a long robe, loosely tied at his waist, _and boy did Iruka mean loosely, was he even wearing?- oh okay, he was also wearing boxers, oh my god FOCUS!-_ stepped out onto the brick facade, a bemused look on his chiseled face. A faded, orange book hung limply from the man’s grip, thumb in place of a bookmark. 

He quickly remembered his situation and fumbled to get his mouth to work. 

“I, my car,” he raised the bottle of vodka up, rather unhelpfully. 

“I need to, ah!”

Iruka gave up on speaking with a small cry and stepped forward, pushing the bottle roughly into the man’s free hand, who took it with a raised brow. Iruka ignored the questioning glance as he dug frantically into his pockets for his phone.

“I’m honestly not sure what’s going on here, but if you were here to see the Mr. Uchiha, he’s currently on his way out of tow-” 

Impatient, he cut the man off, “Someone just stole my car!“

Iruka couldn’t process what was happening fast enough. Not able to locate the phone on his person, he swung the thick strap his delivery bag around off his shoulder, bending forward into the thin layer of snow to dig through it. 

A pointed clearing of a throat brought his attention back to reality. He glanced up in vague annoyance, meeting the stranger’s gaze. 

The man leaning against the doorway raised the bottle back at Iruka before raising a sculpted brow again in question. 

Iruka just sighed, a low resigned sound.

“I can’t find my phone to report it stolen. Uh, _it_ being my car.”

This elicited a confused chuckle from the man, who gestured broadly inside.

“Well, come on in. You can use the house phone. Plus, it sounds like you could use a drink. Probably something much stronger than,” he inspected the bottle with a look of disdain, “ _New Amsterdam_.” 

Still reeling _,_ Iruka slipped off his shoes and stepped into a complete stranger's home.

“I’m sorry, why did you order it if you don’t even like it?” He ventured through chattering teeth, realizing how cold he had been outside now that the warmth from the large foyer enveloped his shivering body. 

His mind had become static, but still apparently had space to be skeptical of the _stunning_ man in front of him.

With this, the man turned to him, “Order?” 

“Yeah, you-“ he cut himself off, giving up on the explanation.

“Eh, whatever, thank you for letting me in. I think my phone may be in my bag.” The full weight of the situation was beginning to dawn on him, someone must have just hot wired his car. He could feel the weight of his own car keys in the bag’s sidepocket.

How was he- _ugh._

He watched dumbly as the man gestured for his coat, heat rising to his cheeks 

“You’re quite cryptic, you know, for showing up in the night with such a tale. I have ordered no such bottle of cheap vodka.” The silver-haired, half-naked man drawled before hanging Iruka’s coat in the closet. 

He continued, “However, I learned early on to say yes to taking life’s detours when they’re offered, especially when such detours look like-“ he cut himself off, looking over his shoulder with almost a predatory gaze at the still-shivering Iruka. 

Iruka waved both hands in refutation, “No, I’m sorry you have it all wrong- my boss, sent me and then- my car, and the vodka?” His words failed him again, bringing his palm his forehead as if that would steady his racing thoughts.

The man laughed again, though it felt light, more friendly than belittling.

“Well, to level with you, this isn’t my home. Perhaps the owner ordered it?” The polite man added in his calming baritone.

He continued as he hung the coat by it’s furred hood on the rack, “Please, come in. I’m sure I can find where he keeps the… slightly more…upscale alcohol. I’ll fix you something while you make the calls you need to.”

Iruka waited until the man turned towards the kitchen, his robe fluttering open with the spin, before quietly slapping his cheeks.

_Could this night even get more chaotic?_

He knew he ought to turn and make a run for it, lest he add his own potential kidnapping to the running list of things he hadn’t planned for his New Year’s Eve. Iruka thought fondly of the cozy fireplace and the “ _Deep Sea Creatures'' documentary_ that he was halfway into. 

A nagging voice snuck into his thoughts, and shook his head in memory of Naruto’s pleas.

_“ ‘Rukaaa! You need to get out more! What is it gonna take to get you to come out with us? We can find you someone!”_

_“Hey, Sas’ and I are going to that bar where we saw that one guy you thought was cute...wanna come?”_

_“Iruka! We’re taking a kinda last minute camping trip this weekend, just the grocery crew, pleaseeee come! You can’t hang out with your pet bird_ **_every_ ** _weekend.”_

_Wow, I guess Naruto’s kinda right. When did I get so...domestic?_

Iruka took a deep inhale through his nose, slightly puffing his chest forward. 

_I can be reckless! To hell with...stranger-danger! I’ll show Naruto who’s spontaneous and- Oh right, car. Gotta report that-_

“You coming?”

Iruka started slightly, remembering where he, and frankly **_who,_ ** he was, “Yeah! Uh...coming.” 

He sauntered down the hall he had seen the man take, finally taking in the home. It was much more humble on the inside than he had expected. There were a few creeping-vine-like plants along the tall, arched ceiling. The walls were a cool grey, and peppered with photos in an assortment of frames. 

He stopped at the last one, a simple wood frame with a photo of two black-haired men, the taller one resting his hand on the shorter, grumpier one's shoulder. He recognized the short one with minor surprise.

_What are the odds of the house owner knowing Naruto’s boyfriend?_

Brushing off the coincidence, he set his bag on the kitchen counter. 

He looked up at the polite stranger, who, seemingly had given up on the robe. It lay draped over the black velvet kitchen stool. When the man bent low to reach into the fridge for a bundle of herbs, Iruka had to fight himself to pull his heavy eyes from his perfect side view of lean, rippled abs.

_Maybe being kidnapped wouldn’t be so bad-_

Iruka nearly clapped his hand over his mouth before realizing he hadn’t actually said that out loud. 

_Thank- fuck. What has gotten into me?_

_Why do I feel so comfortable ogling someone I haven’t even said a coherent sentence to?!_

He looked up sheepishly as long fingers slid an amber cocktail across the counter at him, as if the gorgeous stranger could read his thoughts. 

“Thank you, I uh- found. Um,” he fumbled again, “phone.”

**_Damn, words! C’mon Iruka_ ** _._

“Please, do what you need. I have to go feed the home owner’s cat, I’ll return in a moment.” The man slicked a strand of wild, silver hair behind his ear before turning again from the room.

Iruka _did not_ let his eyes wander to the curve of pale skin where it met lowly hung boxers as he left.

Turning back to his phone, he frowned at the blinking screen.

_5 New Notifications_

_Odd, no one ever texts me._

He flipped the screen open. The photo appeared first, filling the small glowing rectangle. 

An unmistakable head of vibrant blonde hair caught his eye immediately.

Iruka held back a shout. But just barely. He white-knuckled the glass.

The photo showed his boss, in the passenger seat of a car holding the phone out selfie-style- and his boyfriend, Sasuke, flashing a peace-sign to the camera as he looked ahead from the driver’s seat.

The driver’s seat of _his_ car, he realized as his heart sunk, noting his favorite fluffy, pastel green steering wheel cover.

He felt stream leave his ears as he opened the text messages that accompanied it. Iruka was too occupied in his confused fury to notice the stranger's return to the room. 

_9:42 P.M. Naruto Uzumaki wrote: Hey, Iruka! Your car is so clean! How do you keep it like this?_

_9:43 P.M. Naruto Uzumaki wrote: Okay so yeah back to the point, YES. Sasuke and I MAYBE stole your car with the spare keys you gave me last year. But I promise Sasuke is a great driver! He just got his license two months ago and he’s already amazing!_

_9:44 P.M. Naruto Uzumaki wrote:_ **_1/2_ ** _And this coming as your friend, not your boss, I’ve been telling you to take some time off and go get laid or someth-_

_9:44 P.M. Naruto Uzumaki wrote:_ **_2/2_ ** _-ing! And you never listened to me! So we had to take more drastic measures. I am closing the shop tomorrow, so enjoy your early start to the holiday!_

_9:45 P.M. Naruto Uzumaki wrote: I’m totally gonna eat the bag of chips you have in here, will pay you back. <3 <3 <3 _

“I wonder if I’ll lose my job when I **murder** my boss.” He muttered under his breath, unable to tear his eyes from rereading the texts. 

A low voice from the entry caused him to snap his eyes upwards. He loosed his death-grip on the drink, realizing he had no idea what had been said.

“Huh”

“My name’s Kakashi, by the way. You seem distressed, were you unable to get a hold of the police?” 

“Oh, I’m um...Iruka,” he took a sip, “this is very tasty, thank you, er, Kakashi.” He liked the way the man’s name sounded on his mouth. 

It was almost enough to distract him from the reality at hand.

He just shrugged. “I just-“

Iruka trained his eyes on the floor, debating what to tell the man. 

_Where do I even start? “Oh, yeah no I’m fine- my_ **_boss_ ** _just stole my car and is attempting to play matchmaker by stranding me at your house for New Year’s Eve. Everything’s totally under control, perfectly normal shit happening here…”_

In his internal debate, he didn’t notice Kakashi, who had returned significantly more...clothed, move behind him.

Iruka started slightly when a warm, misty breath hit the shell of his ear. A slight turn of his head revealed how close the unbelievably attractive man was.

_He just read the texts._

A violent flush enveloped his already warmed cheeks now that the man behind him knew they were being...set up. Together. 

“I see. I wasn’t aware we both were acquainted with those two walking natural disasters,” Kakashi muttered, withdrawing to his full height. The warmth radiating from the man left with his movement, and Iruka noted it’s absence with a small disappointment. 

Iruka turned in his stool to face him, leaning his chin against the plush backrest to hide his flush. With a quick sweep of his eyes he took in the man’s new outfit- a simple, fitted black turtleneck and a pair of loose cotton joggers.

“Huh? You know them?”

Kakashi continued, gesturing broadly to the room, “Well, welcome to Sasuke’s home. I was asked rather last minute to “cat sit”, though...I now understand he hasn’t even left town, let alone the state.”

Iruka finished his drink with a small, embarrassed shake of his head. “I’m so sorry for the confusion, uhm, heh,” he muttered softly, “I should get going, call a cab-“

Kakashi cut him off, a glint striking the man’s dark eyes, “Shall we return the prank?” 

“Wait, huh?”

Kakashi leaned forward, a dangerous smirk growing across his pale face. 

“I happen to know that our dear friends are terrified of ghosts, even if Sasuke doesn’t want to admit it,” Kakashi winked. “And,” he added, dangling a set of car keys, “I guarantee they think they’re so smart hiding out at Naruto’s apartment right now.” 

Iruka’s jaw dropped, and he felt an uncontrollable chuckle slide from his throat. That was exactly what he wanted to do. 

And like that, it was decided. He gathered his bag and followed Kakashi’s excited gait towards the front door. 

* * *

Iruka ducked his head, biting back his bottom lip to hold in the laugh threatening its’ escape. A harsh wind shook the bush they were crouched behind, he felt a shiver crawl up the soft hairs on his exposed neck. 

“Are you filming?” Kakashi whispered warm into his ear. Iruka could hear the mirth lacing his voice.

He nodded slowly, careful not to make much movement. He’d been to Naruto’s apartment many times over the years, and knew how much the sound travelled across the lawn.

“Ok, get ready,” the silver-haired man used Iruka’s shoulder as leverage, gracefully rising from their snow-covered hiding spot to flip the breakers. 

Resting back on his ankles, Iruka adjusted the phone in his hands. He would have, in any other circumstance, absolutely rejected the idea of filming his friend while himself and a complete stranger scared the ever-loving-shit out of him. 

As it was, he could barely contain himself. The now 30-year-old had been on the receiving end of Naruto’s, and often by proxy, Sasuke’s hairbrained pranks for as long as he could remember.

And car-jacking? That was taking it a step beyond anything they’d done before.

_Not that I’m entirely displeased by the outcome of this one…_

He pushed the thought away. Of course, Kakashi was eager to prank the two back because he was upset by the idea of being set-up with a stranger. It would be silly to think there was any other motive. Did Naruto even know if the man was straight or not? 

He watched smugly through the patio sliding doors as Naruto grabbed for the popcorn from his lounging position on the leather sofa. Iruka could just make out a pajama-clad Sasuke laying beside him with arms outstretched. The two seemed mighty pleased with themselves and were immersed in what appeared to be a...horror movie. Ah, yep- he recognized this one. 

_Oh, this is too perfect._

Iruka drew a steadying breath, glancing up to see Kakashi’s dimly illuminated “thumbs up”. He held up a palm, signaling the man to wait. It took everything in him to not let out the glorious laugh building in his chest.

He wiped a bit of snowfall from the camera lens, anticipating the moment approaching. Inside, the two young adults tensed- the ominous music just loud enough to hear in the video. 

Sensing his cue, he held his breath and made eye contact with Kakashi once more, returning the “go” signal. 

As the girl on the screen moved her unholy limbs from the well, the electricity went out in the first story apartment.

“AHSDFHHHHHHHHH!” Naruto’s unmistakeable shriek carried out into the snowy complex. The light from the courtyard gave enough of a spotlight on the two scrambling men inside. 

Iruka felt himself losing the battle with silence, his chest beginning to heave.

The shouting coming from inside grew louder. 

_Oh shit, they’re trying to leave through the patio doors_.

The metallic lock of the patio doors turned, and he felt long fingers encircle his wrist with a tug.

“C’mon!” Kakashi hissed through giggles. 

_He’s actually...giggling._

Iruka ignored the pang in his chest, remembering how dead he’d be if they were discovered. 

They stumbled headfirst towards the car, racing through the fresh snowfall. They stopped at the far end of the deserted basketball court and Iruka couldn’t hold back any longer. 

He tightened his grip on his co-conspirators forearm as his body pitched forward, laughter overtaking his body. Kakashi wasn’t much by way of support, though, giving out under his pull. They both tumbled onto the now-thick layer of snow, a soft hush of the grass beneath. The chain link fence rattled in a gust of wind.

Iruka tilted his head backwards as he gasped for air. 

“Did you- oh, did you see-“ he breathed out, not able to finish his sentence, his breath puffing small balloons of white into the frigid air.

A rough, equally breathless voice responded from his left, Iruka’s head bouncing softly with each sound the man let out, ”That was...so perfect...you, got it all on video?”

He let his head fall towards Kakashi’s low voice, his ponytail becoming dislodged in the process.

“Yeah,” his breathing beginning to even out, “I can’t wait to...post it everywhere,” he laughed out.

The shouts from Naruto’s apartment bounced off the brick of the complex before fading into the night.

Kakashi lifted his chin, mere inches away, to meet his gaze. Iruka’s golden brown pair met Kakashi’s stirring grey, the muffled patter of snow on concrete the only interruption as the world fell away around him. 

Once, Iruka recalled, he’d been taking a walk through his neighborhood well past midnight. Insomnia had cursed him heavily that year, and his walks became more and more buried into the night. 

It was summer and the humidity had clung to his brow. Just as vividly as the moment he’d heard it, he could remember the way a violin, practiced in a dimly lit room in a house at the end of a long street, came filtering through a window. He’d stopped, without really knowing why, where he stood in the center of the empty street, letting the song course through him.

Each achingly tragic note sent blood rushing to his ears. It was a lonely song, a harmonious fog itself. He’d never heard the song before, he was sure of it, but it had felt as if his body had it memorized. 

_I wonder if Kakashi would have known it._

The sudden thought scared him. He didn’t know where it had come from, and he glanced away from their locked gaze, breaking the spell. 

Iruka quickly took in his all-too-comfortable position, resting atop the smooth plane of Kakashi’s abdomen. Iruka scrambled up to bring his head off the mans’ stomach and readjusted into a kneeling position in the snow. 

Suddenly sheepish, he lost his words again. 

_He must think I’m an idiot. Why am I so nervous, get it together!_

In the soft glow of the yellow streetlight, snow fell as a languid pace. The familiar apartment complex sat in a soft, cushioned silence, in stark contrast to the thrumming heart beat Iruka was sure even Kakashi could hear. 

The man in front of him sat slowly, brushing off the accumulated snow from his chest. Iruka caught a glimpse of his long, pink-flushed fingertips in the soft light.

“You’re cold, let’s…” He stopped, realizing he was inviting himself back to Kakashi’s car.

The man just tilted his head in response, patiently waiting for Iruka to finish. 

That pang echoed against Iruka’s rib cage again when the man moved to brush reflective silver strands from where they had fallen in his eyes.

Iruka stood suddenly, unsure of what to do with the sudden tension. 

A small breath from the other man, getting to his feet in suit. “Let’s go warm up in my car, and then I can take you wherever you’d like to go.” 

Iruka thought he almost heard...disappointment in the man’s voice. 

_So now I’m nervous_ **_and_ ** _hearing things, cool._

The walk back to Kakashi’s matte black El Camino was awkward. Suddenly, everything he did was in question.

_What do I normally do with my hands?_

_Do I always have this bad of a speech problem?_

Sure, the man was attractive. 

_Okay, wow, that’s an understatement. His cheekbones alone look as if they were carved by a literal 14th century artisan._

And yeah, he was stoic with a rippling undercurrent of an adventurous side. 

_He’s still hanging out with me, a complete stranger, on New Year’s Eve after I showed up on his doorstep claiming my car was stolen…_

But, they had just met! Iruka had seen plenty of attractive people in his years, yet none of them had had quite this much of an instantaneous effect on composure.

He climbed into the low, plush passenger seat and pulled his freezing palms to his face. He let out hot air to warm them as he heard Kakashi start the quiet engine beside him. 

The warm air blowing from the dashboard gave him a meager excuse to ignore the other mans’ pointed gaze. Iruka splayed his fingers across and let out a small, uncomfortable laugh. 

“I, um, I live kinda far from here, if you don't want to take me home I can truly just call a cab,” Iruka dared a glance in Kakashi’s direction.

_A mistake_.

Their eyes locked again and Iruka couldn’t bring himself to look away this time. The lidded gaze from those under those feathery gray eyelashes did more for his body temperature than the car heater ever would. He fought to keep his hands over the vents when he felt the blood leave his chest and rush...lower. 

His whole body stirred. The gusts of snow smattered against the tinted windows all around them. A voice he wasn’t entirely sure to be his own screamed to move, to put his hands-

“Would you like me to take you home, Iruka,” Kakashi’s voice low, syrupy. He didn’t move, didn’t make any indication of grabbing Iruka and yet- he felt the irresistible pull. 

The amber light through the window dripped it’s honey gold hue over the upper curve of the man’s stilled lips, the soft, exposed skin at his throat, the dampened cloth that clung to broad shoulders. 

The question reverberated in Iruka’s electricity-filled brain.

It was, again, too much for him. The connection was undeniable and he wasn’t sure if he was ready to be pulled into those oblivion eyes. If he didn’t plant a firm foot on the edge, he’d sure stumble ove-

He pulled back, defeated by his own thoughts, and let his head flop against the back of the car seat.

“Yes, thank you.”

_I wish I could be that person that everyone wants me to be. The type of person to make out with a stranger in their very sexy car._

From the sidelines of his vision he could see the silver-haired man slowly nod. Kakashi let no emotions show on his face if he were disheartened by the decision. 

Iruka withdrew, pulling his coat a little tighter around himself as he settled into the decision to **not** take things in the direction they had been quickly veering in. Kakashi reached for the car stereo before pausing. 

“Any requests? Or I can just find my Kidz Bop Collection..”

Iruka sensed the attempt to lighten the mood, and wasn’t gonna leave the man hanging again. 

“Uh, yeah, do you have an iPod? Let me DJ. No Kidz Bop,” he said, pasting a small smile on his face. Carefully, he extracted the device from Kakashi’s outstretched hand, meticulously not letting their skin connect.

The hum of the engine ticked up as the car lurched forward from the small pile of snow that had accumulated since their arrival. The storm had held steady through the night, and the road was hard to make out.

Iruka perused the rather small but clearly curated assortment of music on the man’s phone, every so often smirking in amusement when a song choice didn’t match the assumptions he’d made in his head.

“Do I have a humorous taste in music?” Kakashi teased, glancing briefly at Iruka’s expression.

“I mean! No, I just...maybe I just assumed you were more of a punk rock kind of guy?” Iruka stammered, embarrassed for his bold assumption. 

Kakashi dramatically splayed his free hand over his chest, not taking his eyes off the road. “Is that how I come across? A 32-year old _pop-punk aficionado?!_ ” 

Iruka laughed, a real smile replacing the tense one he had pulled on before. “I don’t know! You have...your hair,” he gestured at the ruffled spikes of gray, “and the black?” 

“Well, I will have you, and my late mother, know that it _was,_ in fact, a phase,” Kakashi remarked with a false huffiness, eliciting another easy laugh from Iruka. 

“I wouldn’t go making all sorts of big proclamations,” Iruka felt himself relax into the banter, “I can clearly still see some My Chemical Romance on here.” He waved the screen tauntingly at the focused driver beside him. 

“Everyone loves them, _Helena_ is iconic.”

Iruka shook his head, scrolling for the song, “I’ve never heard it…” A stifled gasp came from the driver’s seat and Iruka held up his free hand, “Yeah, yeah, emo boy, I’m putting it on.”

He pointedly ignored the gruff mumbling coming from the driver’s seat, as he settled on the song in question.

**_Long ago…_ **

**_Just like the Hearse you die to get in again_ **

**_We are so far from you…_ **

The slightly melodramatic, but catchy lyrics poured from the car’s impressive stereo system. Iruka couldn’t focus on the song though, as the tempo picked up. 

To his absolute delight, he watched as the mysteriously charming man beside him lost himself in the song. 

His smile was a full-blown grin as Kakashi rolled down the windows, slamming on the steering wheel to the beat of the chorus. He was shouting along with the song, the wind whipping his hair out of the style he’d had it in. 

“ _WHAT’S THE WORST THAT I CAN SAYYY?_

_THINGS ARE BETTER IF I STAY,_

_SO LONG AND GOODNIGHT_

_SO LONG, AND GOODNIGGGGHTTT”_

The soft smell of pines filtered in with fat snowflakes as they sped along the otherwise quiet road. Iruka felt transfixed- he couldn’t look anywhere else if he’d wanted to. His gaze followed the lines that his new acquaintances’ face made as his lips curled joyously around the lyrics. 

Despite the rational knowledge that he’d only known this man a few short hours, everything down to the _familiar_ curl of Kakashi’s smile just felt comforting to Iruka. 

He couldn’t quite place the feeling. Like a dream upon waking. Something that only got fuzzier the more you squinted at it. He supposed it was better not to question it.

When the song finally petered out, Iruka tore his gaze and his thoughts away, returning to the iPod. 

“So, you sure you wanna decry your emo phase so quickly? That uh… felt pretty natural to me,” Iruka said softly, moving along to a Kavinsky song he _did_ know. 

“Says the uncultured one,” Kakashi retorted playfully. 

It was then in the short lull between songs that Iruka’s stomach decided to growl. 

Loudly.

Iruka felt that _damn flush_ creep back into his cheeks.

“Heh, I suppose it has been a long time since lunch,” he muttered apologetically.

A thoughtful hum came from the man, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. 

“Well, at this rate, it’s still a good 20 minutes or so to where your side of town…” Kakashi trailed off, fingers still dancing against the steering wheel. 

“Aha!”

Iruka looked over at the man, raising an eyebrow at the dramatic pause.

“It’s still a bit before midnight, wanna stop at the McDonald’s off the highway? If you’ve also never heard of that, it’s kind of lik-” 

“I know what a McDonald’s is!”

Kakashi was already smoothly changing lanes, glancing over for confirmation.

“So, that’s a yes?”

While Iruka conceded with a small nod, his stomach conceded with another gurgle. He tilted his head to rest against the cool glass of his window, the slow melody of another song he didn’t recognize filling the now mostly comfortable silence between them. 

As they pulled through the drive-thru a few moments later, Iruka did _not_ miss the way Kakashi slid the counter-person an extra twenty as he apologized for arriving late on a holiday evening.

Kakashi eased the El Camino into a spot in the secluded corner of the lot, and began rummaging behind the seat.

“I think I kept it in here,” the man mumbled, seemingly to himself. With a proud grin, he finally produced a large blanket and climbed out the door. 

“Wait, w-“

Kakashi was suddenly around the car, opening the passenger side door with a suddenly serious look that was out of place on the man’s charming features. 

Silver hair fell onto the mans face as he bowed low, extending a dramatic arm towards Iruka, “Monsieur, your table is ready.” 

Iruka hid his blush behind a swat at the man’s arm, shoving him playfully out of the way to climb out of the car. 

Kakashi stepped over into the back of the Camino. Iruka watched as he laid out the blanket along the bed, arranging their small feast of fast-food on top. It was absurd, and incredibly charming. He pulled his loose, long hair back into it’s low-ponytail before climbing up to join him.

The snowfall had let up, just a few flakes peppering the cloudy sky now. The lights of the parking lot buzzed softly against the muffled backdrop, most everyone else in town already curled up at home. 

Kakashi dug into the crinkly paper bag, the smell of fryer grease coating the air. He produced the giant order of fries for Iruka, and a burger for himself. It was comforting, he thought, again. That familiar feeling kept punching him in the face.

“Are you a vegetarian or something?” Kakashi asked, dousing his burger in ketchup.

“Do I have to be a vegetarian to know that McDonald’s fries are actually heaven sent?” Iruka bit back, a teasing smile pulling at his face again. “But yeah, I am actually.”

“Does this bother you?” The silver haired man asked, mouth entirely full of burger. He quickly must have realized the irony in his timing, quickly covering his mouth with a hand. 

That was enough to send both of them over the edge, their laughter filling the empty parking lot. As it faded, Iruka realized that the car’s stereo was still playing. Subdued guitar notes and blurred lyrics accented the dim lot. 

Iruka peered sideways at his contented companion, who was happily chomping away at his meal, suddenly even more curious about the man.

“So how come you’re alone on New Year’s Eve? You seem like someone who would have a lot of friends,” he asked, reaching for another handful of oil-sodden fries.

“You seem to have already made a lot of assumptions about me,” Kakashi raised an eyebrow at him, before glancing back out at the snow-dusted pavement. “I um…”

“Oh, I’m sorry, you don’t have to answer that if it’s-“

“No,” Kakashi interrupted, shaking his head lightly, “I don’t mind. One of my closest friends died a few months ago, and it’s caused a bit of a...rift? Between me and my remaining friend.” The man tilted the back of his skull against the hood of the car, gazing up at the drifting snowfall. 

The glow from the lights above wrapped over his lips as he let out a small sigh. 

“She was my roommate, and I think he sort of blames me for not pushing her to get better treatment when her illness started to get serious. But,” his voice was warm, “Rin was always stubborn. I couldn’t get that woman to do anything she didn’t want to…I was actually kind of excited when Sasuke asked me to house-sit for New Year’s so I’d...I don’t know, so I didn’t have to be in my own house alone.”

Iruka paused before answering, a particularly limp fry dangling forgotten from his fingers. 

“It sounds like he needs some time to figure things out. I’m sorry- to um, hear that, though. Would be much easier for you both if you had each other right now,” he said, looking forward. “Though, of course, it never seems to work out the easy way,” Iruka finished with a small laugh.

Kakashi chucked low at that, “No, it sure doesn’t.”

They let the chilly air pool around their small silence for a moment. 

He felt Kakashi’s dark eyes fall on him as the man slowly continued, “How ‘bout you? I’m not keeping you from some midnight-kiss-awaiting date at home, am I?”

_If only he knew how literally absurd that question is._

It’s not like he didn’t have friends. Some years he spent time with Naruto, some with other friend groups. But then there were just those odd years where everyone somehow all decided they’d spend it with a significant other or their blood relatives- of which Iruka happened to have neither. 

“Unless you count my pet parakeet, I don’t think anyone’s waiting up for me,” he replied sneakily, masking his slight embarrassment. 

“Hah, well I feel better about holding you hostage in a McDonald’s parking lot then.”

“I feel pretty good about you holding me hostage in a McDonald’s parking lot-“ he snapped his teeth together, cutting himself off in shock.

The sentence had escaped him without any consent, as if all the oil from the fast-food had greased up the filters normally in place for _stupid things that should never be said aloud._

The blood rushing to his face was prickly hot and sent his head spinning. He didn’t know where to look, just that he could _not_ look back at Kakashi- who was surely getting ready to drive off and leave him in this parking lot.

He heard a throat clear softly behind him and he steeled himself.

“I can just walk ho-“

“I have a small confession to make- wait what?” Kakashi’s hand shot out to gently pull Iruka’s shoulder, prompting him to turn his head finally. 

When Kakashi waited before continuing, Iruka slowly brought his eyes up. 

“Please, tell me you have to confess that you’re a trained assassin and you’ve been hired to kill me. Just make it quick,” Iruka remarked sheepishly, his blush threatening to overtake his whole body as he finally made eye contact.

Kakashi’s hand fell from his shoulder and his deep laugh bounced off the cold metal of the car. 

“Um, no- but if that were the case I don’t think I could follow through on the mission as is. No I um...”

As he paused, Iruka realized with a flash that the man was acting...shy? 

_That’s a first for the evening._

“So I, um, sort of knew who you were? Already?” Kakashi leaned his face against his palm, peering around the edge at Iruka.

He slowly pieced it together, mood shifting.

‘Wait! YOU WERE IN ON THIS PRANK?!” He shifted in his seat, mind reeling.

“Whaaa, wait no- not like that,” Kakashi grabbed his shoulders with both hands this time, bringing them face to face before letting go again. Iruka took a breath and settled back into his spot on the quickly dampening blanket. 

“No, haha sorry oh, no. I just mean- Naruto has talked about you a lot since I’ve known him, but recently he’s done it more and more. And last week he showed me this picture of you and so I…”

Iruka was reveling in the awe of how out-of-character being flustered was for this man. The soft pale of those high cheekbones dusted with a rosy pink, and it wasn’t from the cold. He felt his mouth twitch upwards, but remained silent. 

Maybe it was a little sadistic, but he was truly delighted to not be the only awkward one for once.

“I guess, what I’m saying is I should have seen this set-up coming. And I should have said I recognized you sooner but I- just um,” 

Kakashi seemed to pick up on the silent taunt, frowning slightly as he finished, “You just were so much cuter than your picture, and I felt bad for already knowing so much about youand I didn’t wanna scare you awa-“

That was enough for Iruka. He didn’t know what time it was, how long they’d been there, hell- what the rest of Kakashi’s sentence was. He didn’t know the man’s birthday, what flavor ice-cream he bought when he was feeling sad, if he liked comedy or action movies better.

He wasn’t sure if the feeling in his limbs was electricity being funneled from below-ground, or if Earth’s gravitational pull had suddenly shifted so it’s center lay buried within the lean-muscled, kind faced man in front of him.

He did know that, almost in-spite of the harsh cold surrounding him, it was the warmest he’d felt in a long time. He knew that Kakashi’s eye’s weren’t black, they were liquid obsidian itself. He knew if he didn’t kiss him now he might never get the chance to do it again.

So he leaned in. 

It wasn’t anything, really, a gentle press against the man’s softly parted mouth. 

It was everything, an electric current poured into a lidded mason jar, a million synthetic fireflies for an audience of two. 

The rest of the man’s hushed sentence became warm breath against Iruka’s lips. 

His eyes were fluttered shut just as a fat snowflake melted over his eyelids. It dripped icy down his cheek as he leaned in further. Kakashi’s mouth curved against his own and a warm, strong hand snaked its’ way under the nape of his neck- pulling them closer together.

Iruka’s body moved as if it had practiced for this. A room he could navigate in the dark. His knees shifted up and over the man’s long-draped legs, straddling his waist against the back of the El Camino.

With a heavy palm against the back window, he broke the kiss, his chest heaving to replenish the oxygen he’d been denying it. Iruka didn’t move his face, though, feeling Kakashi’s own harsh breath beating a warm mist over his upper lip. 

They didn’t speak, and Iruka didn’t open his eyes. Just let the snowflakes touch down and die against his overheated cheeks for a moment, a piano-heavy song continuing along its fading outro within the cars’ cabin. 

He had no idea what he was doing, but if he could just live in this moment for a while-

“You know, it hit midnight almost a half-hour ago…” Kakashi interrupted his thoughts with a whisper, his voice gravelly. 

Iruka snapped his eyes open, the short distance between them ablaze with tangible desire.

“Shut up,” he laughed, not breaking eye contact, “Happy _belated_ New Year’s, stranger,” Iruka breathed, before closing the gap between their hungry mouths again. 

Kakashi tasted like cheap fryer oil and mint chapstick and something sweet and Iruka’s knees were soaked through where he had placed them outside the dry safety of blanket and the cold was beginning to numb his shins and the tops of his ears- 

It was not romantic or movie-worthy at all, and yet, it felt _right._

He kissed into Kakashi’s willing mouth with a heat, unaware when his hands moved into the man’s untamed mess of hair. 

He wasn’t sure if you could hear electricity. Hell, he couldn’t be sure of much of anything right now. But there it was all the same, a dizzying thrum that connected his mouth to his ears to his neck, sending an almost-violent shudder through him. 

His body became a mere puppet, his strings at the mercy of lightning itself. And the lightning wanted to merge.

His back arched forward, hips finding friction against Kakashi’s groin. His grip in Kakashi’s soft strands tightened at the feel of the man’s rough moan into his own mouth. 

Iruka pulled back slightly and ran a thumb along the shell of the man's ear, searching his eyes for continued permission. He wanted to explore, to map out the face he’d slyly studied all evening with the pads of his fingers. He wanted confirmation that somehow, maybe from another life, he knew this body as well as his own.

Kakashi wasn’t having it, a possessive glaze pulling over his half-lidded eyes. He deftly moved a protective hand behind Iruka’s head and pushed them forward until Iruka’s back pressed firm against the woolen blanket. 

Kakashi leaned down, hair tickling Iruka’s cheeks and kissed the side of his mouth. It was tender. The man above him continued, encircling his face in a sweet ring of dampened, quiet pecks. The flush on his neck rose.

He tried to move his arms, wanted to pull him even closer, but found that his hands weren’t his to use anymore. Kakashi had taken both wrists in a firm, yet gentle grip on either side of his head.

His brow furrowed slightly, but before he could eke out a weak protest, Kakashi moved. The temperature in this _fucking snowstorm_ rose. The man lowered the lower half of his body onto Iruka’s, pulling forward in a slow arc. His eyes never left Iruka’s. 

“Unggghhh,” the shuddered sound escaped him before he could stop it. His thoughts scattered and his blood raged, a heat pooling in his groin. It happened again, this time ripping his hips forward in time to meet Kakashi’s. 

Their bodies found rhythm together in the bed of a matte black El Camino, the whole world quiet to make room for the sound of breaths intertwining.

Kakashi released the hold on his wrists, locking their lips together again as he kept moving against Iruka. Iruka let his mouth be pried open by a hesitant tongue and he wouldn’t be surprised if someone told him his eyes had literally rolled to the back of his head in pleasure. 

He wanted more. He needed this more than air, surely it was enough to sustain him. What was before this kiss? 

He wanted, he wanted, he wanted. 

Kakashi’s tongue slid along the back of his teeth. His hand found satisfying purchase at the base of the man’s jacket, maneuvering under all the fabric to move over the ridges of Kakashi’s spine. He smirked into the resounding shiver that coursed through his lover. 

A soft crushing of snow from behind them approached.

A small, pointed cough.

“Hey- uhhh…y’all gotta go home. We’re closed.”

Kakashi tumbled off Iruka, and he whipped around, brushing himself off. He was all-too-suddenly reminded that they were in a _McDonald’s parking lot._

Kakashi couldn’t contain the laughter that rose.

“Oh! We’re so- we’re leav- Uh, Happy New Year!” Iruka stumbled out, struggling to focus his eyes on the intruder. His brain refused to catch up to his sudden shift in reality.

At his words, he heard the man beside him stifle a snort.

_A snort!_

And Iruka, too, dissolved into laughter as the lights from the fast-food restaurant flickered to a shut. He was giddy and the whole world was more saturated. 

Kakashi turned to him as he slowly regained his breath, quirking an elegant eyebrow.

“Would you like to come back to my uh, temporary home?” Kakashi waved his hands in dismissal at Iruka’s widened eyes. “No, not, like that. I would like to just spend some more time with you...for now.” Kakashi paused. “I’d like to know more about you...from you. Plus, Sasuke has a hot tub. And frozen _vegetarian_ pizza.” Kakashi added with a playfully soft pull of Iruka’s disheveled ponytail.

“Are you,” Iruka pulled on a stern look, placing his hand on Kakashi’s chest with a faint push, “trying to seduce me?”

Warm fingers intertwined with his on the outstretched hand. He could feel the flux pulse through their connected palms.

“Only if it’s working,” Kakashi replied, a hint of bashfulness playing into his tone. 

Iruka moved his thumb over the skin of his lover’s wind-chapped knuckles. He felt the rise and fall of each defined ridge, like sheet music he knew by heart. 

A rush of blood to his ears drowned out his thoughts, a sudden calm before he replied softly.

“I think...it might be.”

**Author's Note:**

> I’m not normally one for like...foreign word titles? You know? It feels corny sometimes. But presque vu literally translates to “almost seen”, like when you can _almost_ remember something but just can’t quite get there. And it felt pretty perfect.
> 
> Let me know what you think! <3 All comments and feedback are welcomed. I hope you’re all taking good care of yourself. 
> 
> Come hang out with me on tumblr (Ariesantagonist) or on IG (@aries_antagonist)


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